Challenge yourself to tat 25 motifs within the next 12 months and show us your progress. A motif can be a medallion, snowflake, heart, bookmark, butterfly, earrings or any small piece of tatting. Tell us where the pattern is from or if it's original. Post pictures on your blog, web page or photo page. Add a comment below the current post giving the location of your pictures and you will be added to the list of links.

Thursday, January 28, 2016

Melanie decided she needed more help with her designing process, namely in converting the lace design to paper, so she started with tatting Wild Rose a vintage pattern by Nellie Hall Youngburg then writing it up in modern notation and creating a diagram. She didn't like the original, so she did it again adding some embellishments of beads to fill the gaps and Josephine Knots instead of the smaller rings.

Sue shows us the Motmot bird she test tatted for Jane Eborall. She has her next instalment on TIAS done and still thinks it's a triffid.

Diane has been carrying my Leafy Greens Spinning Wheel glass mat around and is amazed at how much she can get done in spare minutes of time, which reminds me of the poem "Tatting in my pocket" by Noelene Lafferty.She wanted to tat something from this Japanese book and she was sure that she had the centre for design 7 right but when she got to the next round there was no way to intertwine the chains with the shuttles she was using.

Laurette has joined for a third round of the 25 Motif Challenge and she is currently working on a pair of Cobweb Doilies from Tatting Doilies and Edgings by Rita Weiss. She is using thread colours inspired by a paint card which had an ecru colour with a hint of green but the plain ecru worked just fine.

Lilas discarded the row that wasn't working and went with something different, which seems to be working. She started test tatting the adjoining foliage which is allowing her to connect to the split rings, but she has to see how it's all going to fit together.

Marie has tatted up a storm of snowflakes using sewing thread. One of the snowflakes looked like it would fit around glass so she kept it.

HisKid tatted Elaine P. Gan's Chains of Hope bracelet using up the size 40 Lizbeth Green Coral Sea from the suncatcher so it's a little small and may need an extended chain, but it covers the front of the wrist well. She did some playing around and experimenting with her tatting and a finding which didn't come out as she had drawn it, but she likes the effect. She couldn't sleep, so she tatted this piece which is quite small, only about an inch long, from a trial of a diagram Elaine P. Gan showed the test tatters. The next piece is a cross variation that's about 2.5 inches tall.

Wanda was working on Jane's TIAS and notices a thread where it shouldn't be so she's waiting to see if it's salvageable. She found her snowman that came out in the wash and amazingly the hat scarf and flower are still attached. A little blocking and he should be good as new.

Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Sarah has been making these three snowflakes for years and only recently realized how similar they are. The consistent stitch count (3 or 6) makes them really easy to take on the go which meant she could mix and match the centre and the tips and make a whole batch of them. So she did.

Batty Tatter has row 10 done on her doily and is working on the last row.

Elsa used polyester thread # 30 in iron colour and paired it with hand dyed 4 mm viscose embroidery ribbon in aquamarine blue. Small 15/0 Toho seed beads will add a small touch of colour on the vintage edging by Nellie Ellison, from Corticelli Lessons in Tatting which may become a bracelet or cuff. The pattern recommends size 70 thread for the edging but Elsa used size 20 DMC. She has included step by step instructions for the edging and a visual diagram. In order to use it for a bracelet she made some modifications, eliminating decorative picots.

Melanie likes TIAS as it helps get her into the habit of doing something often and she thinks that her mistake will work out all right. She has Day 7 done and she's still not sure what it's going to be.

Sue has Day 6 of TIAS done and it seems like people think it might be a frog. Day 7 of TIAS is done and she thinks it's definitely a root on that "TRIFFID".

Claire started Nancy's Oval Doily from Be-Stitched using size 20 Lizbeth in Vineyard Harvest. Since she hasn't got any snow she had to make her own snowflake and tatted the rings only snowflake by Jon Yusoff, in Lizbeth 20, Blue ice #163 with transparent 11/0 seed beads.

Diane has been carrying her hanky edging with her and tatting every chance she got, and it's paying off. The edging's done and ready to attach. She did a single crochet around the hanky, and now she's crocheting in the back loop only and joining the tatted edging. She finished another Spinning Wheel glass mat today, this one in size 20 Lizbeth, Falling Leaves, #100. She got another little bit of her edging attached. Mary Konior's Spinning Wheel glass mat started in Lizbeth #138, Leafy Greens. The hanky edging is attached and looking pretty worked in size 20 Lizbeth, Springtime #115. She started this simple doily from A New Twist on Tatting and it was a really quick one to make done in Lizbeth Peacock Blues.

Fox close to the finish line on this row and has already ordered more. The row is completed and now it's a waiting game for the thread to arrive. Karey's, #70, combined with a #80 Lizbeth, so she hopefully doesn't run out, tatting an edging pattern by Karey to make a hanky for herself. She didn't like the Easter egg colours so she switched to #80 Lizbeth in maybe fuscia? but she likes the combo with the lilac and a purpley-blue in Lea's thread #50.

Julie P has her TIAS started. Day 2 of TIAS. Day 3 of TIAS. Day 4. Day 5 does it look like a frog? Day 6. Day 7 there are lots of guesses as to what it is including frog, carriage, baby sitting and monkey.

Margaret is using Lizbeth Cranberry Bush No 20 to tat the Land of Laces doily.

Marie tatted a little snowflake designed by Robin Perfetti called Design Tutorial Snowflake. This is a simple motif, wrapped around a mini ornament, using sewing thread. A little motif was made with 2 strands of rayon and one strand of metallic gold, sewing thread using a pattern by Inga Madsen, with a twist on the last row.

HisKid is making progress on her doily, but it's cupping badly. Tropical Punch Beaded Flowers in progress and she thinks she might just be addicted to these. The newest set of Beaded Flowers from Corina Meyfeldt are done in size 40 Lizbeth Tropical Punch with tiny bright pink beads. These top ones are the Beaded Flowers and they are the size of a 50 cent piece in size 40. These next are the Beaded Starflowers and they are the size of a quarter. Here are all of them together for size comparison. Bella Bracelet, by Elaine P. Gan is a pattern she just had to tat. These mini starflowers are tatted in size 40 Lizbeth Elderberry Jam with Czech glass beads Amethyst mini mix beads. The tatted necklace was purchased from YarnPlayer for her 30th anniversary vow renewal. (Congratulations!) This is size 40 Lizbeth Green Coral Sea and little green beads on this suncatcher.